One good thing to come out of the last week would probably be that athletes would inspect what they consume with a newfound vigil. Narsingh Yadav won his battle against doping allegations, proving his innocence, while Inderjeet Singh is now left in limbo, with his chances of flying to Rio de Janeiro for the Olympics on the verge of biting the dust. Days after the National Anti-Doping Agency said his A-sample had failed a doping test, the shotput thrower's B-sample tested positive as well.
Inderjeet had cried foul earlier when his A-sample result came out. He lashed out in an NDTV interview, saying, "This is a conspiracy and there is something wrong in it. This will be checked by the doctors though. I don't want to comment on it, but whoever has tried to raise their voice in this country, they are forced to shut up."
The 28-year-old was touted as one of the favourites to win a medal for India in the Rio Olympics. He was heading into the quadrennial tournament on the back of some excellent displays over the last year. It was the bronze medal at the Asian games that kicked off a windfall for Inderjeet. He went on to win gold in the Asian Athletics Grand Prix and the Asian Championships, where he created a tournament record.
His outspoken nature had landed him in hot water on many an occasion, but he hoped that it would help athletes. He said, "I have been speaking out against the politics in sports in India and how badly athletes are treated and their poor training facilities, and this has riled many powerful people in the country."
There are results of tests taken on July 10 and July 11 that are still awaited. What could give Singh hope is that NADA cleared wrestler Narsingh Yadav of any wrongdoing despite him too failing two dope tests. But with the clock running down to the Olympics, which begin on August 5, Singh may just miss the flight to Brazil.
